68 SMITHSONIAN BEQUEST. 



pleted in May, it will be seen, from the enclosed copy of a 

 letter to me from the solicitors, in reply to one I wrote them 

 on the last of May, (a copy of which is also enclosed,) that 

 it is only to-day that all the forms have been finally and 

 fully completed. 



After getting this information, I went immediately to the 

 proper department of the accountant general of the court of 

 chancery at the Bank of England, and find that there has 

 been transferred to me the following stock, viz : 



1. Sixty-four thousand five hundred and thirty-five pounds 

 eighteen shillings and nine pence in the consolidated three 

 per cent, annuities, commonly called consols by abbrevia- 

 tion. 



2. Twelve thousand pounds in reduced three per cent, 

 annuities. 



3. Sixteen thousand one hundred pounds in bank stock. 

 The books at the bank show the above stock to have been 



regularly transferred to me under the authority of the court 

 of chancery, by the accountant general, as the proper officer 

 of the court, in virtue of the decree reported in my last ; 

 and I have accepted the same on the books, on behalf of 

 the United States, by signing my name to a form of accept- 

 ance drawn out under each transfer. 



The above stock constitutes, with the exception of five 

 thousand and fifteen pounds, the whole property left by Mr. 

 Smithson to the United States, and now recovered for them, 

 with the further exception of some small sum in cash, to 

 which the solicitors refer as still to come from the account- 

 ant general, but of which I have as yet no statement. 



The sum of five thousand and fifteen pounds in consols, it 

 has been decreed by the court is to be reserved and set 

 apart to answer the annuity payable to Madame la Batut ; 

 the principal to revert to the United States on the death of 

 the annuitant. 



I have taken care to instruct the -solicitors to see that 

 there is due proof at all times of the annuitant being in full 

 life as the half-yearly payments are made to her. 



Although the aggregate of the stock transferred as 

 above is under one hundred thousand pounds in its nominal 

 amount, there is no doubt whatever but that the sale of it 

 will yield more than that sum. 



The transfer by the accountant general was made to me 

 only to-day; and this is so far fortunate as that it could not 

 otherwise have been effected as to the principal part of the 



